How to Make Placemats from Kids Art

Today we are making DIY placemats from kids art. Making placemats is a great art activity for kids of all ages and theses placemat ideas are literally endless. I love that the table is protected and decorated with placemats for children that they helped make.

DIY Placemats Craft for Kids

The latest craze in our house is DIY placemats, using the children’s art to create unique place settings for our table. When the children have a friend coming to tea they like to make a special placemat just for the guest, to welcome them to the meal and for them to take home with them afterwards.

These DIY placemats are very easy to make so young children can definitely get into the art fun.

Here’s how we made the kids placemats…feel free to adapt our placemat ideas to suit your kids and the seasons.

This article contains affiliate links.

Supplies Needed for Making DIY Placemats

How to make placemats from your kids’ art

Step 1 – Create the Kids Art

Make your placemat by using art supplies like pens and pencils to draw a design on a piece of cardstock to be applied to a larger piece of paper or start with the larger piece of paper.  

Personalizing the Placemat Artwork

My kids like to make a personalized placemat for each person, decorated with drawings of the person, themselves and some of their favorite things. You could also make seasonal placemat sets:

• Easter
• Christmas
• Thanksgiving
• 4th of July
• Valentines Day
• A family member’s birthday  

Or match your placemat artwork to what your kids are learning about and make an history fact set of placemats, some placemat times tables or include favorite Bible verses.

Start with Art that Your Child Has Already Made

It’s also a good way to re-use art that your kids have drawn or painted. Don’t worry if it isn’t exactly the right size, we can add it to a larger piece of paper as a frame or mat for the artwork.

Step 2 – Laminate the Placemat Art

Once the design is complete mat it on a piece of 12 x 18 construction paper if needed and send it through the laminating machine with a plastic pouch or laminating sheets or use contact paper on both sides of the placemat paper.

Why laminate? The laminating layer strengthens the placemat and protects it from any spills. By laminating you can reuse the placemat over and over because it allows you to wipe the mats clean after each meal.

Step 3 – Use Your DIY Placemats

The child-made placemats bring such a welcoming touch to mealtimes and have been know to encourage dawdling kids to hurry to the dinner table to see the latest creations!

You can make smaller size mats as coasters or cup holders. Kids can create a set to give as a gift to a grandparent.

DIY Placemat Ideas for Kids

1. Make a Toddler Placemats Full of Dinosaurs

Whether you use your child’s art or create a special art piece with their interests in mind, toddler placemats are fun to customize to your kid!

2. Homemade Placemats with Charm

If your child has a favorite piece of art that may not be the right size, just mat it on a piece of paper that makes the placemat the desired measurements and then laminate. I love that artwork that might be forgotten in a drawer or closet can now be enjoyed everyday.

3. Placemat Crafts with Placemat Design

Older kids might want to craft a placemat that is a traditional placemat design like one with a colorful border like pictured. Kids might want to trace their usual plate, bowl, cup and flatware so they can easily set a table using the placemat template.

More DIY Placemat Ideas from Kids Activities Blog

Have you made DIY placemats with your child’s artwork in the past? What art are you going to transform into homemade placemats today?